Bishop announces DOJ grants for Albany, Columbus

COLUMBUS, GA – Congressman Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. (GA-02) released the following statement today announcing the awarding of the Fiscal Year 2012 Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) by the U.S. Department of Justice to the City of Columbus and the City of Albany. The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program (JAG) allows states and local governments to support various activities to prevent and control crime.

“These awards invest in initiatives to assist our law enforcement officers in their fight to keep our communities safe and free from crime,” said Congressman Bishop. “I am pleased that Albany and Columbus will have more resources available to them to make our district safer.”

Mayor Teresa Tomlinson of Columbus remarked, “We are so very fortunate to have strong congressional leadership that assists us in finding these grant opportunities. We are thankful that the Justice Assistance grant program recognizes the important services provided by our Drug Court and Mental Health Court, as well as the success these courts have had in reducing future criminal behavior.

Chief John Proctor of the Albany Police Department said, “The Albany Police Department is extremely appreciative and honored to have received this grant. In hard economic times when local budgets are tight, this award allows us to continue to advance some of our technological and equipment needs.”

The City of Columbus will use this Fiscal Year 2012 JAG award of $99,081 to support the Adult and Juvenile Drug Courts and Mental Health Court programs. Albany will use the $70,673 award to support law enforcement initiatives through training and the purchase of a surveillance camera, tasers, computers, and other equipment.

About the author

Tom Knighton is the publisher of The Albany Journal. In November, 2011, he became the first blogger to take over a newspaper anywhere in the world. In August of 2012, he made the difficult decision to take the Journal out of print circulation and become an online news agency, a first for the Albany area.